Capcom Developer Believes Japanese Game Industry is Finished

The Tokyo Game Show should be a glorious celebration of all that's great about Japanese gaming. But not according to one developer. Capcom’s Keiji Inafune, responsible for the likes of Mega Man and Dead Rising, condmemned the japanese games industry recently, even going as far to suggest it's “finished.” During a demonstatrion of Dead Rising 2, Inafune asked the audience to critically assess the quality of this years show, before voicing his own thoughts.

“Personally when I looked around [at] all the different games at the TGS floor, I said, 'Man, Japan is over. We're done. Our game industry is finished.” Of course he didn’t share these views with Capcom’s upcoming games, instead praising them as an example of “kick ass” games that are still being made in Japan. Ironic considering the development of Dead Rising 2 is being handled by Canadian-based Blue Castle Games. [Destructoid]

Square Enix Rumoured To Lay-Off Between 200 and 300 Staff Members

The Japanese game industry has slowed down in recent years, and with the current economic recession many developers have been forced to shut their doors forever. Even mighty gaming giant Square Enix are feeling the strain, as recent rumours suggest the Japanese behemoth are set to lay off between 200 and 300 people from their Japanese branch.

This news isn’t necessarily the result of a poor economic climate, as speculation suggests this may infact be a simple corporate reorginaisation following Square’s acquisation of Eidos earlier this year. Or the lay-offs may only apply to a specific company owned by Square Enix, such as developer Taito. Of course, the rumours may turn out completely false and no lay-offs are currently planned. Whatever the case we’ll know more when Square Enix decides to comment. [Kotaku]

Super Street Fighter 4 Confirmed For Spring

Recent leaks strongly suggested a new edition of Street Fighter 4 was on its way, and thankfully an official announcement from Capcom has confirmed Super Street Fighter 4 is set for release next spring. The news first emerged when a screenshot appeared showing T.Hawk (not to be confused with skateboarder oldie Tony Hawk) returning to Street Fighter 4. Speculation suggested the game would see release in the form of downloadable content, but Capcom revealed this won’t be the case.

The game will come on disc and won’t be a full priced release. Producer Yoshinori Ono promises an unspecified bonus to those of you who already own Street Fighter 4, and points out the two games won’t be compatible with one another, ruling out online play between the two versions. “Roughly” 8 new characters are set to make an appearance, along with a host of new ultra combos for the original Street Fighter 4 crew. Capcom will reveal more as the spring release date approaches. [GameSpot]

Fable 3 To Possibly Incorporate Natal

Microsoft Game Studios corporate vice president Phil Spencer hinted at the possibility of Fable 3 incorporating Project Natal earlier this week at the Tokyo Game Show. “Fable 2, I thought, was a great release, with the orbs they added with Live, adding new functionality to the franchise. It wouldn't surprise me in the least if Natal found its way into future iterations of Fable” said Spencer. Natal and Fable 3 currently share a late 2010 release date, but with this news perhaps they’ll be sharing more come release. [JoyStiq]